Gluten Free, Feeling Great, Should I Test For Celiac?

[runtherace12]

This past year, I have felt constant fatigue, upset stomach, had allergic rinitis constantly, headaches, nauseated, and then about 4 months ago I started getting severe joint pain 30 minutes to an hour after eating. One night, it was so bad, that I could not move without bringing tears to my eyes. Frustrated daily, I noticed it happened consistently after eating, so naturally I figured it must be something I had been eating.

The joint pain came on so suddenly. I have always been lactose intolerant (which has not deterred me from eating milk products, although I do drink soy milk often), but I figured that was my only issue. I dont get the stomach pains like I do from lactose- more like sudden nausea, headaches, dizziness, confusion, joint pain, and my throat feels thick and swollen.

After keeping a food log for 3 weeks, I began to cut out wheat, and then all gluten.

I have been Gluten free for about 3 months now, and I feel so much better. My acne is practically gone, I am no longer tired every second of the day, and I do not have severe joint pain. I have also noticed my hair and my fingernails are actually growing, for the first time in a long time.

Should I get tested for celiac after doing the gluten challenge for a week? Is it worth it to endure feeling terrible for a week or so? Can I just avoid gluten my whole life without knowing if I am a celiac?

[Darn210]

First of all, you do not need to go through testing if you are perfectly satisfied with your trial gluten free diet resulting in the positive changes that you have experienced.

Second, if you do want to do testing, you will need more than a week's worth of gluten. You will need 2 to 3 months of daily gluten intake in order to have a chance at a positive result. If you only ingest gluten for a week, don't waste your time or money or suffering.

[eatmeat4good]

I think you just did the most diagnostic test there is for Celiac by eliminating Gluten and feeling better and having your symptoms resolved.

A lot of us don't have the diagnosis from a Dr.

You would have to eat 2 to 3 slices of bread a day for 3 months to have any chance of testing positive and then you could still test negative even though gluten makes you sick and destroys your body for those 3 months.

It wasn't worth it to me. I couldn't fathom 3 more months sick as a dog just so my Dr. could say the word Celiac.

Your results and the symptoms that have resolved say Celiac very strongly...if you believe it that is what counts because that is what will keep you well.

I do understand the struggle and wanting to KNOW. I went through it too, but in the end, trace gluten made me so sick that there was no way I would be able to eat enough gluten to test positive.

After some months of being gluten free and resolving symptoms like yours that had been there for years, I asked my Dr. about testing. He said Why would I have you make yourself sick so that I can tell you what you already know?-that you cannot eat Gluten?

Instead we tested the vitamin levels and found Vitamin D deficiency and then found Hashimoto's.

You might test your vitamin levels to see how they are.

There are many people who do that 3 months of Gluten Torture and come back on here to say they tested negative after all that misery. What do they do? Go gluten free...the same as you and me.

[runtherace12]

Thank you both so much for your advice! I feel much better about continuing to go gluten-free, despite knowing if I have celiac or not. Two or three months of eating 2 or 3 slices of bread a day sounds so miserable.

Sometimes, I feel like I'm making this all up, but then I eat something that I didn't know has gluten, and I feel sick. So I know it cannot all be in my head

Best wishes to you all! Thank you again!!

[kareng]

How come if you say " green peppers bother my stomach." no one argues you are making this up or you must eat them? But if you say. " Every time I eat wheat bread, I bloat, get horrible gas, cramps, a headache and diarrhea". People, including doctors, don't believe it's a gluten intolerance? Or real?

[Skylark]

Welcome to the "Why should I make myself sick again to get diagnosed when I already know what's wrong with me?" club.